FIRST STEPS:
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Transcript of FIRST STEPS:
Reflecting on history…….
1909 First White House Conference on the Care of Dependent Children
1912 The Establishment of the Children’s Bureau
1935 Title V Maternal and Child Health
1965 Head Start
The Child Care and Development Fund
The Children’s Health Insurance
The Education Goals
Early Head Start
State Prek Initiatives
1970’S -2008
EARLY CHILDHOOD MATTERS…THE CASE IS STRONG,
THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE CONVERGES
Neuroscience
Molecular biology
Genomics
Developmental psychology
Epidemiology
Sociology
Economics
ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES AND
ADULT CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE
ACEs Source: Dong et al, 2004
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Early Learning
Health, Nutrition
and Mental Health
Family Support and
Child Protection
New appreciation for the integrated nature of early childhood development
New Vision Old Think• Learning begins at school• Health or education• Care vs education• Child focus vs parent focus• Transition from preschool to
school
New Think• Learning begins at birth• Health and education• Care and education• Two generations• Continuity prenatal- 8
Early Childhood Funding in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
The Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program
The Early Learning Challenge
MORE RECENT RESOURCES
DISPARITIES ON THE BAYLEY COGNITIVE ASSESSMENT BETWEEN HIGHER AND LOWER INCOME INFANTS AT 9 AND 24
MONTHS
Source: Halle, T., Forry, N., Hair, E., Perper, K., Wandner, L., Wessel, J., & Vick, J. (2009). Disparities in Early Learning and Development: Lessons from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Birth Cohort (ECLS-B). Washington, DC: Child Trends.
SCHOOL READINESS BY MOTHER’S EDUCATION LEVEL
Percentage of First-time Kindergartners Demonstrating Positive Indicators of School Readiness by Mother’s Education Level, 1998
Source: Child Trends and Center for Health Research. (2004). Early Child Development in Social Context. Data from K. Denton, E. Germino-Hausken, and J. West (project officer), America’s Kindergartners, NCES 2000-070, (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. National Center for Education Statistics, 2000).
Perc
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Nearly 11 million children under age 5 spend time in some type of child care arrangement every week
On average the children of working mothers spend 35 hours a week in child care
Child care expenses take a significant bite out of family income, particularly for low income families
Child Care Aware of America, 2012
THE FACTS ABOUT CHILD CARE IN THE UNITED STATES
Only 1 out of 6 eligible families are able to access child care assistance
Head Start serves less than half the eligible children
Early Head Start serves less than 5 percent of the eligible children
TIGHTENING RESOURCES
Much of the progress made under ARRA in child care has stalled
Families in 37 states were worse off in 2011 than in 2010 due to one or more changes in state child care assistance policies such as more restrictive eligibility criteria, longer waiting lists, higher co-payments or lower provider reimbursement rates (National Women’s Law Center)
LACK OF CHILD CARE SUPPORT EFFECTS FAMILIES
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1-2 years 2-3 years
low quality
average
high quality
QUALITY AND DURATION MATTER
(MONTHS OF DEVELOPMENTAL ADVANTAGE ON LITERACY)
Source: E Melish, EPPE Study
Gap between what science says and what policies support
Complex policy environment
Difficult to describe and navigate
Policies not aligned
Multiple human needs
Slow policy process
CURRENT POLICY ENVIRONMENT
There are an estimated 2. 2 million individuals who are paid members of the early childhood workforce. They make up 30 % of the instructional workforce.
Estimated 3.2 million individuals provide non paid non- parental care
Women working in early care earn 31% less than women with similar qualifications in other fields
Continued difficulty attracting and retaining staff
Higher education institutions do not have capacity to respond to the diversity of roles and amount of preparation needed to assure high quality
Workforce estimates by Rick Brandon, in The Early Childhood Care and Education Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities, Institute of Medicine and National Research Council, 2012
THE CAPACITY OF THE FIELD
The Child Care and Development Fund
Head Start
Elementary and Secondary Education
DEVELOPING A NATIONAL PLAN FOR UPCOMING REAUTHORIZATIONS
Build public awareness about the importance of the work and the contribution to the economy
Include early childhood in any job creation measures
Target funding to improve the capacity of higher education institutions
Create community infrastructure/networks to support early childhood providers
LAUNCHING A CAMPAIGN TO SUPPORT THE ECONOMY THROUGH IMPROVED EARLY
CHILDHOOD JOBS
200 million young children are at developmental risk due to poverty, malnutrition, lack of early stimulation and other factors
There is growing evidence from countries in the global south that we can intervene early and make a difference
THE LANCET ON CHILD DEVELOPMENT 2007, 2011